


with eyes unclouded by hate

by Little Keplerette (classycloudcuckoolanderclasso)



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: F/M, established friendship between preston nerris and harrison, so like come at me, these three are the closest dont fuckin lie to me
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-17
Updated: 2018-01-23
Packaged: 2019-01-18 17:35:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12392832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/classycloudcuckoolanderclasso/pseuds/Little%20Keplerette
Summary: Harrison accidentally blinds Nerris after a miscast spell and consequently finds that the whole camp is now against him. Well, save for Nerris herself, the platypus, and Preston. And David, to some extent, but he's David.Preston just wants his two best friends to get their shit together before he mcfreaking loses it and does everything himself.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i don't know how to write these kids???
> 
> \+ this was written before parents day aired aight

It's an accident, he swears.

Nerris knows it is, at least. He knows it is. The stupid platypus Preston adored using in his plays knows it is.

Everyone else, though? They don't believe him.

He can see it in their eyes - the looks of horror, of disgust, of fear. Various ranges and combinations of those three emotions flicker through the eyes of their fellow campers whenever he passes by, and he doesn't need to look directly at them to know they're all because of him, and what happened to her. Tears prickle at the corners of his eyes with each whisper, but he does not react, does not speak. He only swallows harshly, and continues on with his day.

David doesn't know what to think, he can tell. The man only had the best of outlooks on life, however, so all Harrison received from him was never-ending support, and reassurances that 'they would figure something out' even without Harrison's magic helping them out.

(He can hear the unspoken 'hopefully' in his voice. It makes his heart clench at the possibility that there was no reversing what he had done. Stupid magic.)

The girls are distraught, naturally. Ered calls him and his magic 'absolutely uncool', which isn't normally a spiteful term to him, but the way she says it to him this time, her gaze stormy, makes him cower, and want to curl in on himself. Nikki actually tackles him to the ground, angry and ready to tear his throat out, before Neil and Max manage to wrestle her off of him, leaving her spitting curses and insults at him. It’s terrifying to know that someone who once looked up to you with all their heart now hated you.

The others are on a similar level of angry at him. Space Kid, as kind as he is, knows when someone's been wronged, and has resolutely decided to ignore Harrison every time he entered the room. Dolph was more civil, but the art he had been producing after the incident could only be considered... less than safe for work. Nurf had taken to visibly breaking anything in his hands in half every time Harrison so much as breathed in his presence, and Neil - well, Neil had already hated him to some degree prior. This wasn't much of a difference. Max... was visibly angrier, and more volatile in Harrison's presence, but otherwise, he was exactly the same.

He didn't blame them.  _He_  hated him right now.

Even Gwen doesn't really look at him. She acknowledges him, treats him with civility, but her gaze is anywhere but his face. She shows no anger, no frustration, no hatred - only disappointment, and resignation. It's like she already gave up on him a long time ago, and this just sealed the deal.

Admitting it hurt, but it was better to admit to himself now that he had no one on his side anymore, beyond possibly David, the platypus, and Nerris.

And... Preston.

Preston visits him in his tent, a few days or so after the incident, and Harrison doesn't need to turn around from his item sorting on his bed to know that it's him standing there - Preston cast a certain shadow that always left Harrison feeling quieter than he had been prior. The deck of cards in his hands receive a thorough shuffling before Harrison stuffs them back in their container, putting it back in his suitcase.

"Harrison."

For once, his voice is quiet. Max had mocked Preston once on his concept of volume control, and after a long winded rant that only proved Max's point, the dramatic boy had attempted (keyword being  _attempted_ ) to speak in much softer tones. And at the moment, it was working. Sort of.

Harrison didn't mean to sound so  _tired,_ but he did. He didn't look at him. "Preston. Come to make known your boundless hatred of me as well?"

"No."

Harrison scoffs. "You can’t lie to me. I know you hate me."

"Do you  _want_ me to hate you, Harrison?" Preston asks him quietly, and it's then that Harrison decides he prefers the louder Preston, because quiet Preston is unnerving and serious and it's hard to ignore him. The various colored handkerchiefs in his hand shake as Preston asks him again, "Do you really?"

"..." Harrison turns to face him. The resident theater camp kid's golden eyes, in the light of the moon behind him, cast a glow on the boy's face, making him seem unreal. There is no fear, no anger, and no hatred in his eyes. His gaze is a bit like Gwen's, in a sense, but unlike Gwen, his eyes show no disappointment - only gentle concern and stern disapproval. Of what, Harrison wasn't certain.

(If you were to be Preston right now, you would know that this disapproval would be of how Harrison was acting after the whole incident.)

Harrison finally gathers up the courage, admitting after a while, "... No."

"No, what?" Preston's eyebrow arches up delicately.

"I... I don't want you to hate me."

The other boy smiles kindly. It's such a relief to see a smile on someone else's face other than David's that Harrison exhales deeply, the theater camper sitting in front of Harrison on the bed as well. All is quiet for a few minutes, until Harrison sniffles, and immediately warning bells go off in Preston's head as his hand reaches behind Harrison's back, at the ready. Harrison draws his knees up to his chin, and buries his face in his arms, quietly sobbing, and all Preston can do is rub circles on his friend's back. He wasn't sure yet if Harrison direly needed one of his signature hugs, but he remained at the ready.

"You know it was an accident, right, Preston?" Harrison's voice is muffled and choked in between his sobs.

Preston hesitates for a moment. After a few moments, however, he tells him honestly, "We both know what we know, and I know nothing about what really happened. But," Preston glances to the side, then back at Harrison. "If Nerris, of all people, believes you to be innocent, then I too, shall believe your innocence. There is nothing more tragic than being one against the world, Harrison, and I'd rather you didn't experience that."

"That's... a really nice sentiment..." Harrison peers up at Preston through teary lashes, and grins weakly. "Thank you."

"You are my FRIEND-" Preston coughs, loudly, clearing his throat, and Harrison knows that one was intentional. Still, he chuckles anyway, and Preston, glad that he got the desired reaction, returns to his normal speaking tone. "You are my friend, and I'll be DAMNED - sorry, damned if you have to face everyone else alone."

Pause.

"Nerris would also probably kick my ass if I left you alone."

Harrison snorts. "Probably?"

"I do NOT want to be on the receiving end of her magic missiles AGAIN, Harrison!" Preston yelps, and Harrison openly laughs this time, wiping away his tears with the back of his gloved hand.

The two boys fall back into silence once more.

"So," Preston murmurs, and Harrison looks at him. "It was caused by your magic?"

"... Yes."

"Then it's reversible by your magic as well, then?"

Harrison hesitates. "... Potentially."

"Potentially?"

"You know how stupid my magic is sometimes," Harrison grumbles, and he attempts to conjure some ice in his palm to prove his point. Instead, however, he conjures some rice, which he chucks at the other side of the tent in a fit of anger. "Even with all my practice, I’m still an amateur. That's why my parents sent me to magic camp. They were scared of me. Trying to help Nerris out with this would only make things worse in the end."

Preston raises an eyebrow again. "Okay, but have you TRIED using your magic to fix what you did in the first place?"

"No, because there is a higher chance of me messing it up even more if I do," Harrison admits morosely. He conjures a pair of d20s, and rolls them between his palms in a melancholic fashion. Preston only watches him as he continues, "I already hurt Nerris enough. She should hate me."

"She doesn't."

"But she should," Harrison throws the dice in the same direction where he had thrown the rice, and turns away. "I took away her sight, Preston. That's like taking away a huge part of you, like taking away my magic, your plays, and her stupid cute fake ears. How can Nerris see the world and its magic now?" He slumps against his bed, sighing in defeat. "She was the world to me, and I took away the world from her."

Silence.

Preston's eyes grow wider, and Harrison immediately realizes his mistake. He clamps his hands over his mouth as Preston's grin widens to terrifying lengths. "DID I HEAR THAT RIGHT?"

"Mnnghnppf!" Harrison protests, but immediately Preston is flouncing around his tent. The somber mood is immediately tempered with Preston's excitement as Harrison groans and lets go of his mouth long enough to say, "Preston,  _no."_

"I KNEW IT! I  ** _KNEW_** IT! My shipping chart was RIGHT!" Preston crows triumphantly, and it's loud enough that Max pokes his head out of his tent to yell, "SHUT UP, PRESTON, IT'S LIKE 1 IN THE MORNING, GODDAMMIT!"

Harrison's face is burning. He knows it is. It's probably as red as Nurf's hair by this point. He can't tell beyond the heat in his cheeks and the sweating. He hadn't meant to admit what he had - it had just slipped out, and now Preston was milking it for all it was worth. Groaning, the illusionist buries his face in his palms again as Preston manages to calm down long enough for him to sidle up to Harrison, a catty smile on his face. Harrison looks up, noticing the proximity, and raises an eyebrow.

Preston opens his mouth, and Harrison threatens, "Sing something from one of your musicals and I will make you disappear." It’s not serious, Preston knows it isn’t, but Harrison winces at what he says. Preston knows what he did, but it still makes him uneasy.

Preston closes his mouth, brow furrowing. "You are NO fun."

Beat.

"HOLD ON A MINUTE!" Preston yells, startling Harrison into dropping the cards he had begun to reshuffle again. "I forgot to ask: where is Nerris? Is she NOT YOUR TENTMATE?"

Harrison stills, and, if you had asked Preston at that exact moment, he would have said that he practically heard Harrison's heart stop in its tracks. "She's not in her bed, is she?"

"Hm..." Preston walks over to the other bed on the other side of the tent, and quietly slides the sheet down. Under the sheet is Nerris, in a deep sleep, having forgotten to take off the fake elf ears again. "She is here."

Harrison lets out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. He forgot that Nerris was a deep sleeper at the worst (best?) of times. "She's asleep?"

"VE- very, surprisingly enough," Preston murmurs, draping the sheet gently over Nerris again before nodding at Harrison. "We will talk about your next course of action - TOMORROW!"

Harrison stares. "Next course of action?"

"Why of COURSE!" Preston's volume control had, once again, gone  _out_ of control, but thankfully enough Nerris slept like a log. And the elf ears probably muffled some of Preston's voice. Harrison blamed his slip up. The boy slides over to Harrison again before declaring, "At the break of dawn, we will decide how we're going to go about bringing Nerris the Cute her sight back!"

Harrison sighs. "And how are we going to do that? We're not doctors - we barely made it through first aid camp."

"SIMPLE! We will practice your MAGIC!" Preston makes jazz hands before placing his hands on Harrison's shoulders, face growing serious once more. "That is the best course of action. More practice? LESS CAPRICIOUS MAGIC!"

**_"PRESTON FOR THE LOVE OF GOD I WILL KICK YOUR FUCKING ASS IF YOU YELL ONE MORE TIME!"_** Max yells from the next tent over.

Preston sticks his tongue out at the direction of Max's voice - which makes Harrison snicker - before turning back to Harrison. "We are going to practice your magic. I will BREAK A LEG if I have to. If you really want to find a way to help Nerris, you are going to have to MAN UP-" He jabs a finger at Harrison's chest. "- and practice your MAGIC. You said so yourself - it can potentially reverse the magic you cast on Nerris that made her blind in the first place, but only if you're more sure of your magic. YOU ALSO-"

Harrison raises a finger to his lips, and Preston lowers his voice again. "You also said a long time ago that magic is real to those who believe, and if you don't believe in yourself, then of course the magic's going to go wrong. It's simple fantasy physics!"

"Fantasy physics?" Harrison laughs.

Preston waves his hand. "You get the point. So, will we be doing magic practice tomorrow?"

"I don't think the other campers will be wanting me practicing magic in the open," Harrison mutters, but Preston's eyes sparkle mischievously at his sentence - something that makes a chill run down his spine. "I don't like that look. That’s the look you get when you’re about to do something potentially insane."

"We are not going to be practicing your magic in the open, SILLY! We are going to..." Preston pauses for dramatic effect. "... FIND A-" Harrison waves his hands wildly, and Preston barely manages to understand that it means he needed to lower his voice. "- find a safe haven in the woods. A clearing, perhaps, or a grove of trees. Something that only we would know. We will go location scouting tomorrow. Alright?"

Harrison smiles weakly. "We really don't need to do anything like this."

"Oh, but we do, if you want to give the world back to your world," Preston waggles his eyebrows and Harrison groans in defeat. "I will be seeing you at the CRACK OF DAWN, Harrison! Adieu!" And with a dramatic sweeping bow, he disappears out through the tent.

Silence befalls the tent Harrison shared with Nerris once more, and, lightened by Preston's motivational talk and promises, he finishes his item sorting in a much better mood, stuffing the suitcase back under his bed when he finishes. With a yawn, he takes off his hat, hangs it on the edge of his bed, and murmurs, "Good night, Nerris," before falling asleep on his side, facing away from his tentmate.

For once in his life, after the incident, Harrison sleeps undisturbed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi yes as usual im sorry if none of the characters end up being written right ;~;

_"You can't use that spell, that's against the rules, Harrison."_

_Harrison smirks, wagging his finger. "Ah, but I can, Nerris, you silly elf. I checked."_

_"Checked what? Out of the local insane asylum?" Nerris rolls her eyes, crossing her arms and sticking out her tongue at him. "That's not in the rules, Harrison. I should know - I've read the handbook for Pixies and Pythons from front to back."_

_"Ah, but did you read-" Harrison leans across the board, nose to nose with Nerris, whose breath hitches at his proximity before he conjures a copy of the handbook for Pixies and Pythons from behind her ear, despite its size. "- the footnotes?"_

_Upon realizing the reason for his closeness, Nerris lifts a hand in between their faces and shoves Harrison back into his seat, shaking her head. "Of course I did! And the spell you were going to cast-"_

_"- is allowed as long as the following parameters have been satisfied, and will be maintained throughout the whole campaign," Harrison smirks and flips the handbook open to a page, scanning the footnotes, before turning it over to Nerris, who examines it critically before groaning and shutting the handbook, shoving it at Harrison's chest. "So?"_

_"Fine. You get to cast the controllable meteor shower on the army of draconian elves," Nerris sulks. "Roll for damage."_

_Harrison, out of a show of good faith, takes off his gloves to prove to Nerris he isn't going to use his powers, before rolling. A 15. Not too bad._

_"Roll for control."_

_A 5. Yikes._

_"You summon a very powerful meteor shower, but because of your sorcerer's ineptitude, some of the meteors hit your party instead," Nerris recites. "Everyone, roll for resistance."_

_They roll._

_Nerris examines the rolls before grabbing a piece of paper and tallying the damage. "Nikki, your warrior takes seven damage."_

_"I'm rock solid!" Nikki cheers. "Still got like twenty HP left, take that Neil!"_

_"Neil, your alchemist takes eight damage."_

_"Jesus Christ," Neil mutters, subtracting the damage from his health. "That leaves me with what, ten HP? If I die, you guys are losing your only mostly-competent pseudo-healer next to Preston."_

_"Preston, your bard takes-"_

_"My bard is wearing the FANCY PANTALOONS, remember?" Preston reminds cattily. "Fire and waterproof!"_

_Harrison laughs at the look Nerris gives him before groaning again, the girl grumbling, "Roll again for impact of meteor on fancy pantaloons."_

_Vigorously, Preston shakes the die in his hands before rolling an 18. "AHA! A marvelous roll indeed! The fancy pantaloons reign VICTORIOUS!"_

_"The fancy pantaloons take the brunt of the damage, leaving Preston's bard with only a single HP point deduction," Nerris declares. "With the draconian elves defeated, your party gains access to the treasures in the chest. There is one for each of you, but you must choose wisely between the four treasures. Do you understand?"_

_Nikki practically_ vibrates  _in her seat. "What are they what are they what are they what are they?"_

_"Well..." Nerris rereads the list she had made prior to the end of the campaign. "I had five set aside in case Max joined us, but since he didn't I'm going to disregard one. The first treasure is the Sword of-"_

_"I WANT IT!" Nikki shrieks._

_The group laughs as Nerris passes Nikki the card of the treasure she had picked out. "The Sword of Cau'muhee. It's a sword whose blade is perpetually on fire, the edges of its blade ridged with teeth."_

_"So a flaming chainsaw sword?" Nikki grins from ear to ear._

_"Er, well, I wouldn't put it so crudely-"_

_"CHAINSAW SWORD!" Nikki hollers, jumping to her feet and waving her card around before darting in Ered's direction, the girl having a pleasant conversation with Dolph and Space Kid near the flagpole. "I GOTTA SHOW ERED!"_

_"Wait, NIKKI!" Neil groans before turning to Nerris. "Just gimme a treasure you think I'll like."_

_Harrison swears he saw Nerris's glasses flash knowingly. "The Crystal Ball of the fallen seer Rothengard. If you play in any other future campaigns, you can use it to see an opponent's weaknesses."_

_"What, like their Achilles's heels or something, like weak knees?"_

_"No, their deepest darkest secrets - the things that'll get them weeping on their knees begging for mercy."_

_"... You know me too well and that's scary," Neil admits, taking the card for the treasure before running after Nikki. "NIKKI, SLOW DOWN!"_

_"And that leaves two treasures for you two," Nerris turns to her two closest friends, grinning. Preston flashes a thumbs up at her while Harrison rolls his eyes in a mock spiteful fashion, though his eyes glitter with amusement as Nerris reads out the descriptions. "The first one is the Heart of Philia. It grants you exactly one wish no matter what it is, but only in the direst of circumstances. The second is the Soul Ribbon of Hav'oque, which is a very powerful weapon that draws upon the user's HP every time it's used. If you need a measure of its power, it could have probably taken down the whole draconian elf army in one blow.'_

_"I'm taking the SOUL RIBBON!" Preston declares, proud of himself as Nerris passes him the card. "Heaven KNOWS I'm the second tankiest next to Nikki, for some odd reason. And it'll look absolutely FANTASTIC with the FANCY PANTALOONS! Defense and offense has been duly covered!"_

_Harrison rolls his eyes again. "Preston, you never complete armor sets."_

_"I am OFFENDED - I do collect armor sets, but they never give me the right kind of POWER-" Preston waves his hand. "WHATEVER! Thank you for the new treasure, Nerris the cute, our amazing game master."_

_"Thank you, thank you, you're too kind to the lady of the castle," Nerris makes a show of bowing while still sitting down before continuing. "And that means you get the Heart, Harrison," Nerris passes him the card for the Heart of Philia before scoffing. "Figures - you needed a heart, anyway."_

_Harrison raises an eyebrow. "And what's that supposed to mean?"_

_"Oh, nothing," Nerris smirks. "Either way, you can use those cards in our next campaign, and hopefully next time Max joins us too."_

_Preston rolls his eyes. "The chances of dear Max joining us are about as high as you admitting that Harrison doesn't suck at magic."_

_Nerris visibly sputters in indignation, which gives Harrison the time to glance over the card in his hands._ **_The Heart of Philia. Grants exactly one wish, no matter what._ **

**_Exactly one wish... no matter what..._ **

_"Harrison?"_

* * *

 "Harrison?"

Harrison stirs, and when he opens his eyes, he sees Nerris staring down at him through her large glasses, and immediately he averts his gaze from her cloudy blue eyes. Or, he tries to, but for some reason, her gaze is still trained on him as though she could still see, and it draws him in. They’re still hopelessly beautiful to Harrison, and he hates how he can never seem to really look away once he actually looks. He closes his eyes though, to stop himself from looking just this once. "Nerris...?"

"Is your stupid face awake yet?" Nerris herself is still blind, however, so her hands find their way to Harrison's face, patting him down and poking at his eyelids. "You're still asleep! Open your eyes, Harrison, you big dummy!"

"How can I open my eyes when you’re poking at them?" Harrison complains before gently grabbing both her wrists and pulling himself up, stretching. The girl feels around for his bed before seating herself on it, waiting as Harrison combs through his hair with his fingers before searching for his hat, only to find it missing. Confused, he turns to Nerris, and nearly chuckles, though he manages to stop himself in time.

A sound escapes his lips, however, and Nerris picks up on it. "What? What's so funny?"

 "You... you're wearing the wrong hat, I just realized this, wait," Harrison searches all over the tent for her hat, and once he finds it, plucks it from the ground and dusts it off before putting it on his head. "There. Now we match."

Despite being blind, Harrison can feel Nerris's deadpan stare aimed directly at him. "You put on my hat, didn't you?"

"Did I?" Harrison smiles as he stands up, bowing slightly. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. Would you like to check?"

"I want to eat breakfast, Harrison, preferably without falling on my face first," Nerris retorts, but the boy can see her hiding a snicker behind a palm. It lightens his heart, just a little, but seeing her eyes again makes his smile fall back into a frown, his eyes saddening.

Nerris reaches out blindly, still seated on the bed, and Harrison takes her hand, grasping it firmly to let her know it was safe for her to stand, that he'd never let her go, that she was safe in his hold.

(Jesus Christ. He was starting to sound like Preston.)

With that small gesture, the sorceress stands, and slowly, Harrison leads her out of the tent, letting both of them bathe in the warm morning sunlight. Neither of them liked waking up early in particular, but Harrison had made a promise to Preston, after all, and Nerris was probably just hungry.

Speaking of Preston, where  _was_ he?

"MY DEAR FRIENDS!"

Nerris and Harrison both bump heads in their surprise, the two magic kids whining in pain as Preston, who had emerged from the tent he shared with Ered to their right, scratches at the back of his neck sheepishly, murmuring his apologies for startling them. The bump causes the hats to fall on the ground again, and this time, they wear the right hats when they pick them up.

"MANY APOLOGIES for startling the both of you so FOOLISHLY,” Preston bows before turning to Nerris. Immediately his hands make their way to hers, batting away Harrison’s to hold them tightly against his chest. “My lady. How faireth thee on this MARVELOUS summer day?”

Nerris blinks before smiling shyly. It sends Harrison's brain into overdrive. "My darling bard. The fair lady is doing quite well, and she thanks you for inquiring of her well-being regardless."

"Ah, to see such a lovely smile from the fair lady? TRULY, I have been blessed on this day," Preston's smile is nothing less but charming as he presses the faintest of kisses to the back of her hand. Harrison's brain is still processing both Preston's flirtatious quips and Nerris's shy responses as the tips of Nerris's ears tint a faint red - not that anyone except her knew about it because of the fake elf ears on them.

Preston continues, "So. Where might the dear lady and her BELOVED knight be heading at this early hour?"

Nerris's cheeks tint a matching red to her ears ever so slightly - something Preston picks up on with the faintest of knowing smiles. "It is unbecoming of a bard to tease his fair lady in such a way, but if you must know, we were heading for the mess hall."

"How fortuitous - I was JUST heading that way myself!" Preston claps his hands before lacing his fingers in between Nerris's, and nudging Harrison slightly before doing the same as well. This seems to knock Harrison out of his stupor as Preston says, "Come along, you two. BREAKFAST waits for NO MAN - or LADY!"

He can't lie - that makes him laugh. "Or bard, apparently."

"Yes, Harrison, or bard." Preston waggles his eyebrows at Harrison before leading the two to the mess hall. At this early hour, the only people running around are the Quartermaster, David, and occasionally the platypus, so Harrison finds that relaxing is much, much easier on his end - he's surrounded by people who don't hate him.

... Well, he's not sure about Quartermaster, but he 'got' the guy his favorite kind of puzzle some time ago - that had to be some brownie points in his favor, right?

"Good morning Harrison, Nerris, Preston!" David greets softly from the table closest to the kitchen. Today's breakfast seemed to be bacon and eggs - something visibly edible, for once, which makes Harrison and Preston smile. Nerris can't see it, but she  _can_ smell it, so she matches their smiles as the two boys lead her to the seat across from David, seating her. Preston heads for the Quartermaster, ready to snag some breakfast trays as Harrison sits himself on Nerris's left.

"Doing alright, Nerris?" David asks kindly, reaching over to gently pat the girl's hand to let her know he was across from her.

Nerris nods vigorously. "Temporary blindness stops not the strongest mage, David!"

"I don't doubt that," The man says honestly, and he looks at Harrison as he does so, smiling. The kindness in his eyes is almost overwhelming to the boy, who only averts his gaze as Preston slides trays in front of him and Nerris before going to fetch his own. With the presence of food distracting him, Harrison guides Nerris's hands to the spoon and fork respectively, then to the plate, before starting on his own breakfast, lost in thought. Nerris, on her end, manages to spear the bacon with her fork successfully, and even the Quartermaster seems impressed as she proceeds to consume everything on her plate, second-guessing where everything was. By the time Preston returns, she's pretty much finished, while Harrison is barely through half of his.

"You're out of bacon, love," Preston informs her gently, placing a hand on her wrist to stop her from possibly breaking the plate in half. The pet name makes Harrison and Nerris freeze, and David boggle at him, and while his face remained passive, Preston panics in his head. It hadn't meant to slip out, the affectionate pet name, really, but it had, and now he had to own up to it if anyone asked. "Here. Put down the utensils."

Nerris complies quietly, and Preston is otherwise thankful she doesn't comment on the nickname.  _Perhaps she is used to my... slip-ups? I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing, but..._

On Harrison's end, the boy's mind is running a mile a minute, trying to decipher Preston's actions that morning.  _Is he- was that- are they-_ He was unsure if Preston was  _messing_ with him because he knew Harrison liked Nerris a lot, or...  _gah. No use thinking about it now. Weren't we about to do magic practice today?_

"So! You three seem up awfully early today," David breaks the silence with a grin, taking a sip from his mug of hot chocolate. "What's the occasion?"

Harrison shakes his head. "Nothing, really. Nerris woke me up really early for some reason."  _Don't tell David about magic practice. Don't tell David about magic practice._

"I didn't know it was early! How early is it?"

"Around six, Nerris." David checks his watch before replying.

"WHAT?!" The girl is flabbergasted by the revelation. "Geez. I didn't know - sorry, Harrison. You must be feeling pretty sleepy."

Preston waves it off with a cough. "We were about to do something ANYWAY, later in the day. It's luck that he woke up this early - means we can START EARLIER!"

"Keep it down, Preston, everyone's still asleep," David reminds with a laugh before turning to Harrison. "Is this little thing you two are going to do going to be dangerous?"

"Er, no?" Harrison shrugs because honestly? He doesn't know. It was a possibility, especially with his magic, but he really didn't want to worry David any futher. He was the only adult next to the Quartermaster who didn't shun him - Harrison didn't know  _what_ he'd do if David too had turned away from him.

David visibly relaxes. "Good. I knew I could count on you three to be the sane men here."

Just then, the door to the mess hall slams open.

"Here comes the cavalry." Harrison mutters, mostly to himself.  _Time to ready myself for the usual._

Nerris and Preston hear him though, and despite herself, Nerris shoves Harrison into her spot and moves into his, shielding him from the gaze of the other campers flooding into the mess hall. Preston frowns, and shifts to Nerris's other side as well - he was the tallest of the trio, so hiding both of them would be easy.

"Don't worry, Harrison," Nerris whispers to the boy. Though she can't see his face, she schools her own face into what she hoped was a reassuring expression, and groping around for his hand, she feels for his clothed palm, and squeezes his hand. "We won't let them talk bad about you - not while we're here, okay?"

"You don't have to do this." Harrison mumbles.

"Well, I want to. Preston wants to. And you can't stop us." Nerris sticks out her tongue. "Just - relax. It'll all turn out okay, okay?"

Harrison isn't quite sure he believes her.


	3. Chapter 3

It's Nikki who bounces up to their table first, smiling happily at David. Despite Nerris's earlier reassurances, Harrison slides off the bench slowly and discreetly as she greets, "Hi David! Smells like bacon and eggs over here - is that breakfast?"

"You got that right, Nikki," David laughs as out of the corner of his eye, Harrison finally slinks under the table and away from sight, leaving only Nerris and Preston on their shared bench. "Why don't you go grab some?"

"Haha, don't mind if I do!" Nikki rubs her hands together eagerly before bounding off towards the Quartermaster, hollering for her own tray.

Preston laughs uneasily as Neil and Max pass by the table next, and while Max pays little to no mind to any of the table's inhabitants, Neil reaches out to pat Nerris's hand awkwardly, to let her know he's there. Harrison, from his spot under the table, recognizes their shoes, and freezes next to David's leg - a movement the man manages to feel. Awkwardly he drops his spoon, and excuses himself to pick it up, reaching out to pat Harrison on the shoulder as he does so.

The way Neil's hand curves around hers is something unique to Neil, so Nerris manages to recognize him by touch alone. "Neil?"

"Yeah, Nerris," He greets softly. Max only groans and crosses his arms, tapping a foot impatiently as he waits on the sidelines. Neil, however, pays no mind as he cocks his head to the side. "You doing okay?"

"The great mage is doing very well today, thank you," Nerris replies honestly. "Seriously. I'm fine."

"It never hurts to ask-"

"Okay, we're done here, Neil," Max pulls on Neil's arm, only to yell as Nikki practically runs him and Neil over, sliding into the space next to David. "OW! NIKKI, GOD DAMMIT!"

The sheer speed at which Nikki slides onto the bench sends her legs flying under the table, where it hits Harrison on the shoulder, and he yelps in pain. The sound catches the comedy trio's attention, and with a confused frown, Nikki peers below the table-

_SPLAT._

"... Preston, why'd you shove your eggs into my face?" Nikki asks in confusion. She licks at the side of her mouth. "Not that I'm complaining - these are some gooood eggs. You know you could've just  _given_ them to me if you didn't want them anymore."

Even Preston is surprised by the speed at which he had chucked the plate of eggs into Nikki's face. "I- THAT IS- I don't- yes, that is... EXACTLY what I was aiming for! I wanted to GIVE the eggs to you because I didn't WANT them anymore! HUZZAH!"

"Give it to her like a normal person next time, Preston? Geez..." Max mutters. "You could've blinded her."

The word makes everyone wince, save for Preston, who only scoffs. His foot gently nudges Harrison's shoulder as he asks, "NORMAL? This is about as normal as NORMAL can GET around here, Max, don't be RIDICULOUS."

"Whatever." Max waves him off before saying, "Neil. Come on. We still have to get breakfast and Nurf looks like he wants to get another serving."

"Tell him to buzz off,  _I'm_ taking that serving," Nikki mock hisses before saying, "Anyway, you still gonna eat those, Preston? The bacon on your plate, I mean. You gave me the eggs already."

Preston glances down at his plate, and with a sigh, pushes the tray and the food towards Nikki, only lifting the glass of orange juice he had requested away from the tray and keeping it in front of him, claiming it as his own. Eyes shining, Nikki practically wolfs down the bacon, a thumbs up in gratitude facing Preston as Neil and Max return with their own breakfast trays, sliding in next to Nikki. David moves over slightly, taking Nikki and her tray with him so the other two can sit down, while under the table, Harrison inches backward slightly, back bumping against Preston's legs.

"So, how has your morning been, you two?" David asks, genuinely curious.

Max morosely takes a bite out of his bacon. "Shitty."

"It's always shitty for you." Neil points out.

"Your point being?"

"Language, Max," David sighs before brightening up again. "But I do hope your day gets better. You must've woken up on the wrong side of the bed today."

Preston, despite himself, makes a quip. "Isn't that EVERY DAY, David?"

Nerris snorts as Nikki nearly chokes on the bacon, laughing. Max turns to Preston, scowling. "Did I ask for your commentary, Preston?"

"You  _needed_ it," Preston leans forward, batting his eyelashes at Max. The shorter boy recoils as Preston snipes, "BUT, I suppose my wisdom is not for everyone. At least my lovely Nerris appreciates my words of wisdom, don't you?" He leans back and nudges Nerris, who rolls her eyes. At her action, Preston dramatically holds a hand to his chest. "Oh, you WOUND me, fair maid."

"Don't need to see this shit this early in the morning, thanks," Max grumbles, eyes flicking towards Nikki for a split second, only to freeze at the way she was eyeing his plate. With a groan, he takes a few more bites out of his food before pushing the tray as well in Nikki's direction, and, facing Nerris, he comments, "So. How's the blind life?"

"Max!" Neil elbows him.

Harrison swallows as Nerris shifts in her seat, answering honestly, "Kinda hard. It's like a much longer version of the spell of blindness I cast on Neil before, so I think you can imagine what it's like. It's nothing the daughter of a great wizard and a dragon queen can't handle."

"Except I was only wearing a blindfold," Neil mutters, taking a sip from his coffee mug. "This is- this is different, Nerris."

"I know," Nerris tells him seriously. "But it's really not that bad! Preston and Harrison help me get around all the time, so I know I'm always safe and sound. They obviously know how to treat the lady of the castle."

Harrison's gaze softens at her words, his heart lightening, and, despite himself, he leans his head against her knee, drawing his own up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them, listening in on their conversation.  _I bet if I were up there, they wouldn't even be having this pleasant a conversation,_ Harrison thinks to himself morosely, finding solace in the soft cloth of Nerris's pants.

Above the table, however, the mood grows heavier at the mention of Harrison, and Nikki slows in her eating as Neil opens up conversation. "... Speaking of Harrison. Where is he now, if he really is helping you out like he should?"

"He's FIXING Nerris's things," Preston immediately responds defensively. Only David seems to notice the way his fingers tighten around the glass of orange juice by a hair's breadth. "So she doesn't TRIP on them if he DOES somehow fail to see them while leading her out of the tent."

Max hides his scoff with a sip of his coffee, but it doesn't escape Preston's glare as he comments, "I hardly doubt he's actually fixing anything, but okay, whatever, Preston."

"And what's THAT supposed to mean?" Preston hisses.

Max shrugs nonchalantly. "Nothing, really."

"Oh, I THINK the fuck NOT-"

"Preston." Nerris places a hand on his arm, and with a sharp inhale, the boy lets himself relax again next to her. Harrison, out of concern, places a gloved hand on the thespian's knee to remind him that he was there, and with a deep, long-suffering sigh, Preston lowers one hand to pat Harrison's hand to reassure him that he was fine, the other lifting the glass of orange juice back to his mouth to take another sip.

Neil, on his end, only sighs at Max's actions. "What Max is trying to say is that Harrison is kind of- sort of- okay, he's honestly more likely to make things worse than actually fix them, let's be fucking honest."

"Isn't that everyone?" Nerris points out sharply. "I'll admit to making stuff worse sometimes - but only sometimes when I roll low! -, and I know Preston will admit to that too. RIGHT, Preston?" She elbows the thespian, who nods in agreement before saying, "You didn't have to ELBOW me, I was going to AGREE!"

"Yeah, but," Neil waves his hands around to emphasize his point. "He's- okay, for one, he set David on fire trying to save Nikki. You call that fixing things?"

"He sucks," Nerris grumbles in agreement before amending, "But he tried. That's what's important, I guess...?"

"You _guess_?"

David nods, faintly remembering the event. "Nerris is right, Neil. While that event was slightly painful and terrifying, I know Harrison was only trying to help Nikki, even if Nikki's cause was a little less than... uh, I don't know what word to use for this, so I'll just say moral?" David's eyes flit over to Ered seated at a table nearby, drumming her fingers on the table to the beat of some unheard music as a glass of milk wobbles precariously on top of Space Kid's helmet. "Either way, his intent was good, and I'm thankful for that."

"You're too fucking nice, David," Max grumbles into his cup. "He fucked up. We all know this. He's decent at the things you and I call parlor tricks, but that shitty actual magic he has?" He chugs down the rest of his coffee before slamming the mug on the the table, but not hard enough to break it. "He can't control it."

"That's why he's here," David tries to defend weakly, remembering Harrison's words from a long time ago. "He's trying to learn how to bring things back, and things like that."

 _Evan._ Harrison's hands tighten into fists, remembering his brother, and he shuts his eyes tightly, willing the tears back.  _Don't cry now, god damn it. This isn't the time or place._

Max doesn't even glance in the others' direction as he stands up, holding his mug and heading for the kitchen to get more coffee. "Yeah, well, clearly, it's not working, because as you can see, he still can't bring back Nerris's eyesight."

Everyone in the mess hall  _freezes_.

Harrison, from his spot under the table, slaps his hand over his mouth, stifling the cry that had threatened to spill from his lips.

Preston's voice is venomous as he stands up. "EXCUSE me, Max?"

"You heard me, dickhead." Max says coolly, back to them. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need more coffee."

David frowns, reaching out to the boy. "Max-"

"Don't fucking touch me, David," Max snaps, slapping away David's hand with his free hand. The action makes the older man recoil, a sad look crossing his face. At the sight of David's hurt expression, Max sighs, and grumbles, "Sorry. But you know I'm right."

"Max," David reprimands sternly. "Harrison's trying. We all know this. He just needs a little more practice and encouragement, that's all-"

"He fucking made me cough up handkerchiefs! Or did you fucking forget that?!" Max yells, calling the attention of the other campers already seated in the mess hall, making them all turn to face him. Harrison cowers under the table as the boy continues, "He blinded Nerris! Do you  _not_ see the blind girl right in FRONT OF YOU, DAVID?! You want to encourage THAT?!"

"Hey!" Nerris yells, standing up as well. "He's dumb, but he didn't mean to do it!"

"Sure, like he didn't mean to make me cough up that shit I coughed up," Max scowls. "He was aiming for Neil, for fuck's sakes! That meant he wanted  _Neil_ to cough up the handkerchiefs! He's a fucking mo-"

"MAX, LOOK OUT!" Neil yelps, knocking his friend to the floor, just as a butterknife goes flying into the nearest wall, right where Max's left eye would have been.

Max's eyes trace the handle of the knife to Preston's hand, poised in such a way that confirmed he had been the one to throw the knife. The thespian is quiet, deathly so, and as he steps out of the bench and places a hand on Nerris's shoulder, a chill passes down nearly everyone's spines. Harrison, in his hiding spot, is trying not to cry, but it's also really difficult not to, so he settles instead for trying to stop the hurt sobs wracking through his body.

 _He's right. Fuck, he's right._ He rubs furiously at his eyes, his tears soaking into his gloves.  _Stupid. I'm a stupid kid with magic I shouldn't even have who made his brother disappear and made one of his best friends blind, possibly forever. I set my counselor on fire. I made someone cough up handkerchiefs and all sorts of stuff - on purpose. He's right. I'm terrible. I'm a fucking FREAK._

_I should've disappeared. Not Evan._

_It should've been me._

_Maybe I **should** just fucking disappear._

"I will NOT tolerate you calling Harrison such AWFUL names, Max-!" Preston slams his palms on the table, and, startled, Harrison bumps his head on the underside of the table.

Now thoroughly confused, Nikki peers below the table again, but finds no one, so she looks back up at Preston, eyes wide. "You made the table bounce with your angry palm slam. Cooool."

"I didn't-" Preston's anger fades as worry for Harrison takes over instead, and, ducking his head below the table as well, he's genuinely confused when he doesn't see anybody there. "... Huh?"  _Harrison?_

"What's wrong?" Nerris asks. She can still feel Harrison by her leg - there's a weight and a wetness soaking her pants leg letting her know he's still there.

"It's..." Preston frowns. "... It's nothing. Come on, Nerris, we're leaving."

"Huh?" Nerris's blind eyes flicker downward to where she knows Harrison is still next to her leg. "But, what about-"

Preston presses a finger to her lips. "Let's go."  _Where could Harrison have gone?_

 _But... Harrison's still here, we can't leave..._ "The lady demands you explain yourself - why are we to depart so early?"

"Because thine beloved bard MIGHT just impale an impetuous FOOL bedecked in BLUE and FROTHING with CYNICISM," Preston grits out, golden glare aimed at Max, who only glares back. He can tell Max is unnerved, however - the boy looks more defensive of himself than usual, hands gripping Neil's and Nikki's like lifelines. If stares were knives, Max would already be dead. "While the lady remains sightless, her bard wishes NOT to subject her to the HORRID stench of blood and gore at such an early hour of the day."

Nerris snorts. "You know as well as I do that I damn well can handle blood."

"Just- please. Can we just GO?" Preston nearly begs. He leans near her ear, and Nerris tries not to flinch as he whispers, "Harrison's not under the table anymore. We have to go."

"No fucking need to talk shit about me right in front of me, PRESTON," Max drawls sarcastically. He holds up his hands, and snatches his coffee cup before brandishing it in his direction. "We'll do you the favor of leaving ourselves. Come on, guys. Let's go before he fucking guts us."

Nikki hops off the bench, trailing after Max like a puppy, while Neil hesitantly pats Nerris's hand again to let her know he was leaving. Preston only watches with a critical eye at their retreating backs, and, after a few minutes, the other campers - who had been watching the whole affair - start filing out of the mess hall as well, until finally, the place is deserted, save for David, the Quartermaster, Preston, and Nerris.

"That was SO stressful." Preston flops back down on the bench, groaning.

David drums his fingers on the table before standing up. "I'll... go check on Max and the others. You three will be fine with the Quartermaster, won't you?"

"Yeah." Nerris nods.

"Nope." Preston shakes his head.

"I'll take that as a yes." And with that, David leaves after the other campers, the doors swinging shut behind him. Minutes later, the Quartermaster files out as well, grumbling, "You kids better not make a mess of the damn mess hall." before slamming the doors behind him, leaving the trio alone to their devices.

"Harrison, it's safe now," Nerris calls. "We're the only ones here."

"You mean WE'RE the only ones here," Preston corrects, brow furrowing. "Harrison disappeared in the middle of the conversation after I yelled at Max."

Nerris frowns. "But, he's right here. I could feel him crying on my leg a while ago. Come up here, you big baby, you're gonna ruin my pants."

Silence.

The girl reaches down to the wet spot near her knee, waving her hand around. Her fingers make contact with only air. "... Harrison?"

But no one answered.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what is an update? can you Eat It?

_"Harry?"_

_Little hands climb up the ladder, checking in on the bundled up something on the top bunk of the bed. Eyes like dark jades squint as the bundle rises and falls rhythmically, and quietly, oh so quietly, a little hand reaches out to shake the bundle again. "Harry. Harry. Big brother."_

_A snore is the response._

_The little boy to whom the hand belongs to pouts considerably before shaking the bundle again, a little harder this time. "Harry, wake UP!"_

_Another snore._

_Irritated look on his face, he climbs up the last steps, crawls up to where he knows the ear is, and yells, "WAKE UP!"_

_"GAH-!"_

_Whoever's under the blankets bumps their head on the rafter above them, and yelps in pain as the little boy crawls back, satisfied with his handiwork. With a grumble, the blankets come off, revealing a young boy quite possibly not older than eleven, rather long brown hair sticking out in all directions as he glares weakly at the younger boy. The little boy grins at him, missing tooth and all, until finally he laughs, running his fingers through his hair._

_"Goooood morning Harry!" The younger boy chirps. "You were sleeping in too much!"_

_Harrison takes one look at the clock on their bedroom wall and SQUINTS. "... It's 2 in the morning."_

_"Exactly!"_

_The older boy groans before flopping back down and drawing the covers over his head. "Too early. Much too early."_

_"But HARRYYYYYYYY!" The little boy whines._

_"Talk to me again in five hours."_

_"HARRYYYYY!"_

_"Zzzz."_

_"HARRYYYYYYYY-"_

_"Okay, fine, Jesus Christ!" Harrison throws the covers off of him, now unable to fall asleep. "Why must you do this to me, brother."_

_The little boy giggles before clambering down the ladder excitedly. "Because you were sleeping in too much!"_

_"I'll say it again: it's 2 in the morning," Harrison grumbled as he slides out from underneath the covers to climb down after his brother. "Much too early to be doing anything except sleeping. Even Dad isn't up this early!"_

_The little boy waggles his eyebrows. "It's never too early for magic!"_

_"... You got me there," Harrison admits as he lands on his feet, brushing himself off before wiggling his fingers into the pair of gloves on his dresser. His brother, on the other hand, scrambles to his dresser on the other side of the room, and dons his own gloves, excitedly jumping up and down. Harrison sheds his pajamas to don his golden button up and black vest before turning to his brother, eagerly bouncing. "Evan, calm down, you're going to wake up Mom and Dad."_

_Evan practically vibrates in place. "I can't help it! I'm excited! Today's the day you promised me you'd teach me-"_

_"- your first card trick, I know," Harrison laughs as he pulls out his beginner's deck of cards. "And I don't break my promises. But you could've woken me up later and it wouldn't have made a difference, you know?"_

_"As Dad always says, 'the early farmer catches the thief stealing his crops!'" Evan recites as if from memory, and the brothers laugh. Harrison dons his top hat before creaking open the door slowly, checking for their parents. Evan peeks out from under him as well, and upon the confirmation that the coast is clear, both of them sneak out and down the stairs, through the living room, and into the background, where Evan practically rolls on the lawn, excited._

_"Calm down!" Harrison laughs as he begins to shuffle the deck expertly. He'd done this many times before, much to his brother's amazement and his parents' consternation, and each time it worked, he felt just a little bit more empowered to learn harder tricks. Like pulling a rabbit out of a hat. "You're gonna get grass stains on your clothes and Mom's gonna get you for that."_

_Evan sticks out his tongue. "No, she won't. She loves me."_

_"She loves me too," Harrison sticks his tongue out right back. "That's not a valid argument."_

_"Oh no, you're right!" Evan whines before sitting up. "I gotta think of a better argument next time!"_

_"You do that," Harrison laughs as he gestures for the younger boy to come closer. Eagerly, Evan stands up and practically runs him over, much to Harrison's amusement, but that also causes the cards to fly all over the place. "Evan, seriously, we can't learn magic like this."_

_"Sorry..." Evan makes an apologetic pouting face. "I'll help you pick them up."_

_"Even better - I'll pick them up myself, using..." Harrison wiggles his fingers, and the cards all begin flying up and swirling around the both of them. "Magic!"_

_"Whoaaaa!" Evan cheers as Harrison creates a swirling mini tornado of playing cards, with them in the eye of it, and Harrison preens proudly - until the magic goes out of control, and the cards all begin flying all over the place. Harrison and Evan both shriek in alarm and duck as the cards fling themselves at the tree, the fence, the walls of the house, the shrubbery, and the flowers, until finally, it's all over, and the cards are even worse off then they originally were._

_"... Whoops." Harrison mutters. "Mom's going to kill me."_

_"No, she won't. She loves you." Evan argues._

_Harrison blinks, and looks at Evan, who only grins and gives him two thumbs up. Despite himself, he smiles. "... She's still going to give me more chores, you know."_

_"Yeah, but she loves you still. She's always gonna love the both of us, right? 'Cause she's Mom, and moms always loves their kids no matter what happens!"_

_"..." Harrison's smile is soft. "... Yeah. You're right. C'mon, Evan. Help me clean up?"_

_"Got it!"_

* * *

"Harrison?"

Nerris's hands begin to wave faster, checking for the illusionist's presence by her feet. She meets nothing, and in turn, fear and doubt begin to take root.

"Harrison!  _Harrison?!_ " The panic in Nerris's voice makes Preston stumble to his feet, if only to get a proper hold of her. Her clouded blue eyes are wide with distress, though it was clear from the way she was desperately trying  _not_ to panic that she didn't intend for them to be. "Harrison, you dumb salamander, where are you?! Harrison?!"

"Nerrie-  _Nerrie-_ " Preston's not used to being the not frantic one. It's usually Nerris or Harrison - 90% of the time Nerris, actually - doing the calming, being more emotionally stable between their trio of friends. She was prideful and arrogant - perhaps that was what allowed the two boys to get along with her, being their own degrees of prideful and arrogant - but when it boiled down to it, she was the only one capable of really bringing both Harrison and Preston down from their high horses, and vice versa. All Preston can do is shake Nerris's shoulders, trying to snap her out of it. "Nerris, darling,  _calm down!_ " Perhaps the pet name would snap her out of it. He might have been exposing himself, but  _fuck_ that. Nerris needed him right now.

Her eyes are unfocused, glassy. Preston's not sure if it's because she's on the verge of breaking down in her panic or if it was because of her blindness. "Preston- where's-"

"Nerris-"

"He was here, I know he was- I'm not-"

"My dear-"

"We have to look for him-"

" _NERRIS!_ " The girl finally falls silent at Preston's yell, and though he knows she cannot see him, suddenly he feels rather naked as he breathes in and out, trying to compose himself once more. Ered had once mentioned he was like a cat when he got mad enough - his hair would, unintentionally, look like it was rising, the same way a cat's fur would. Perhaps it was a projection of his distressed feelings. Either way, he wills himself to calm down, breathing in and out slowly and surely, making sure that he's perfectly calm, before placing a hand over Nerris's again.

Nerris doesn't look at him. She can't, anyway. "..."

"Nerris," Preston says seriously. There is no volume fluctuation, no nothing. Only a serious Preston, trying to calm down a friend. "I'm... I'm sorry for yelling at you. But you were- that- it wouldn't do, to panic over someone like this." He casts his gaze to the side, contemplative. "... I don't blame you for it, but... it would be best if we both stayed calm."

The other magic camper tries to look at him. Her eyes somehow manage to focus on the center of his face, and it's like she can still see him, despite the handicap. "Preston..."

"I know, Nerrie," He places his other hand on her hand as well, holding her hand in between his. "Harrison isn't here, though. He's gone."

"He was  _right here_ before Nikki and the others left," Nerris argues weakly. Her free hand traces where she knows Harrison had been leaning against her leg. "He can't have left. He has to be here somehow."

Preston finds no flaw in her logic. Harrison is by no means an expert illusionist or magician, but thanks to his strange magical aptitude (and ineptitude), there are things he wouldn't know how to do, but manage to do anyway. This he brings up with a sigh, murmuring, "Well. Maybe you're right. But I don't see him right now, and pardon my bluntness, but I am absolutely sure you don't see him too."

"I..." Nerris looks away, and Preston feels like a huge fucking dick, for some odd reason. Maybe it's because Nerris isn't normally like this - so overtly concerned for Harrison's well-being, so determined to be certain that Harrison is alright. There is a certain sort of envy blooming in the pit of his stomach, but he quashes it down in favor of helping both of his friends - they deserved that much, and he owed them that much.

He loved them, after all.

Nerris pulls her hand away from Preston, but he does not pull it back, as she feels again under the table, for a Harrison who isn't there. When her hand meets nothing, she sighs, but it doesn't stop her from searching further. Preston can't find it in himself to tell her to stop, because there is a certain determination reflected in her cloudy eyes, despite the aforementioned cloudiness, that tells him she isn't going to stop even if he tells her to. So he lets her be.

_I know he's here... I can feel it._

Nerris is by no means a magician like Harrison - her magic is at best glitter bombs and dice for ammunition - , but there is a faint, almost niggling feeling, tickling at the tips of her fingers, that tells her that Harrison is still  _in_ the room, but neither she nor Preston could see him. It was just a strange feeling - and most of the time, Nerris trusted her gut feelings. She had nothing else to go with, anyway, seeing as that she couldn't  _see_. All she could do was trust that her gut feeling was right.

 _Stupid Harrison... I know you're here, you big dummy..._ Nerris slowly moves out and off the bench, and Preston reaches out to keep her steady as she goes to stand on her own two feet, wobbly, before reaching out again, this time to the space in front of her, between the benches between the tables.  _Harrison..._

**_Nerris?_ **

The voice is echoey, and faint, but she knows that voice.

"I hear him!" Nerris whispers to Preston, who only blinks, and faintly wonders if she's gone insane. He dismisses the thought, however. "Preston... strain your ears and listen. He's here."

"Nerrie-"

"Just  _listen_." It's ironic to hear that from Nerris, of all people, when she didn't listen to Harrison or Preston very often, but Preston does so anyway.

**_Why can't you hear me?_ **

"I don't hear him," Preston admits mournfully, and it breaks his heart to see Nerris's face fall like that. He feels like he's betrayed Harrison and destroyed his script in one blow. "I'm sorry."

"Try again, please!" It'sunlike Nerris, the cute and powerful, to beg. Even she knows this much. But she's desperate now - though whether it was desperation to prove she could hear Harrison, or desperation to prove she wasn't hallucinating, Preston doesn't know either. All he knows is that this is a Nerris he knows exists, but it is not one that he sees very often. "Preston- he's-"

**_Guys... I'm right here...?_ **

"I really can't, Nerrie."

"Just  _listen,_ please, I-"

**_Did I..._ **

**_Disappear...?_ **

* * *

He's there, but he isn't.

His hands are cold, his feet numb, but he's there.

Nerris's hands are reached out towards him, and despite himself he tries to grab them, tries to hold on to them. He fails miserably to even hold them slightly, so he settles for grazing her fingertips with his own gloved ones, feeling rather silly as he slowly, slowly, lines his hands up with hers, trying to regain feeling in his hands, and trying, perhaps, to catch her attention.

He doesn't know where he is. It's still the mess hall, but it's not at the same time - their mess hall did not have shadows licking at every corner, after all, despite what the Quartermaster would like them to believe. Smoky tendrils of inky blackness curl and uncurl around his ankles, his elbows, the table legs, the windows, everything, and even though it's bright inside the mess hall, there are clusters of tendrils blocking out the sunlight beaming in from the windows, so he knows that the tendrils are either figments of his imagination, or do not really stop the light despite trying to block it out.

Nerris says something, he knows she's saying something, her lips are moving, but Harrison does not hear much of anything. He strains his ears to listen, and even then, her voice is a breathy whisper of what it usually is - bright, spirited, and determined. This is not the Nerris he knows best, but it is still a Nerris he knows well - a Nerris vulnerable, a Nerris he only saw when she thought he wasn't looking or listening hard enough. A Nerris that occasionally surfaced during difficult times, because in the end, even if she is still the powerful and magical Nerris the cute, elven sorceress and daughter of a dragon queen and a great wizard, she is still just a young girl.

A young girl he'd blinded by accident.

A friend he'd blinded by accident.

Harrison might have been hallucinating, but he could have sworn the dark tendrils seemed to become more corporeal with the passing of that dark thought.

"Nerris, can you hear me?" Harrison calls again, his hands still pressed against hers in a desperate attempt to even reach her. "Preston?"

Nerris says something again, but Harrison does not hear. Preston says something, and Nerris's head whips around to yell something at him - Harrison recognizes her posture, though he's spooked by how Nerris's blind eyes seem to focus on Preston even without really seeing him. Preston appears to be spooked too, because he flinches back, but not before saying something else, looking hurt. Nerris seems to recoil at his words, and though it's like a silent movie to the illusionist, he can tell she's apologetic as she turns back to face him - but not really, since she can't see him.

**_Know... you're there..._ **

"Nerris?" Harrison tries again.

**_Ha... son...?_ **

"So you  _can_ hear me!" He's never felt this desperate before, either, to be able to get Nerris to hear him again. "Nerris, please, can't you feel me? I'm right in front of you!"

**_Where... you?_ **

"In front of you! Nerris, please!"

**_Harr... on?_ **

Why are her words so choppy, so murky? There is no reason, and yet Harrison is frustrated that her words don't even seem to make it to him, and his words to her. Hell, they don't seem to be making it to Preston either, because the thespian is still standing there with a confused expression on his face and a hand on Nerris's shoulder, ready to lead her away. "Nerris,  _please-"_

There is a strange crackling at his fingertips, one that Nerris seems to be feeling as well, judging from her facial expression, but Harrison doesn't care - if it means she's starting to feel him again, he's going to take it, god damn it. He tries again. "Nerris! I'm right here!"

**_Harrison?_ **

His name! His whole name! She said his name and it hadn't been muffled up at all! "Nerris!"

_**Harrison!** _

"Nerris!" The crackling at his fingertips grows stronger, but neither Nerris and Harrison know what it meant. Either way, however, Preston can see Nerris's face brightening with hope, tinged with a faint desperation, and watches as she calls for the boy who isn't there. "HARRISON!"

**_NERRIS!_ **

**_"HARRISON!"_ **

**_"NERRIS!"_ **

The crackling culminates into a large shock of electricity, one that courses between both of the magic kids, and like a thunderclap, Preston witnesses a sort of smoke cloud, erupting from the tips of Nerris's fingers. She cannot see that, but she feels them passing by her, the smoke curling around her body like tendrils, though unlike the ones that haunted Harrison prior, these seemed more benevolent in comparison.

She feels something else as well though, in that smoke cloud - a hand. Two hands.

Two familiar gloved hands.

God, she could just fucking  ** _punch_** him for scaring her like that.

 _God_ , she could just fucking  ** _kiss_** him for coming back from... wherever he'd gone.

With a cough, Preston waves away the smoke cloud, only to boggle as the boy he'd deemed MIA stands before Nerris, tears in his olive eyes and a trembling lower lip, before Harrison ditches all pretenses and goes in for the kill, throwing his arms around Nerris like she's the one thing keeping him tethered to this plane of existence, holding her close. And, much to Preston's delight - and the strange feeling in his stomach - Nerris reciprocates, her own arms snaking around him as she hugs him back, the tears in her own eyes carefully regulated.

"Harrison," Preston breathes softly, and it's then that he feels Harrison's arms thrown around  _him_ as well, and quite frankly he can't stop the churning feeling in his gut as Harrison mutters an incoherent mantra to himself as Nerris stands by, hiding away the fact that she was wiping away the tears that were accumulating in her eyes. "Harrison... were you here this whole time?"

"I told you he was," Nerris murmured. "But you didn't listen."

"And I don't blame him - I don't think I really  _was_ here in the first place," Harrison amends, before wiping at his tears with the back of his arm. He takes Nerris's hands in his own, squeezing them, as if to reassure himself that he could finally hold her, and she only sighs quietly. Preston would bring up the fact that they were still rivals, at that moment, if only to see their precious reactions, but... at the moment, he couldn't bring himself to do it.  _Let them have this little reunion. You're probably never going to see anything like it in a while._ "I just... I was here, but I  _wasn't_ , you know?"

"I do not." Nerris replies petulantly, but unlike before, this only makes Harrison laugh. "What's so funny?"

"I was only gone for a few minutes, but..." His gaze softens. "I missed you guys. I missed that fire."

"But where DIDyou go?" Preston presses.  _That's_ the confusing part. "What do you MEAN, you were here, but you WEREN'T?"

Harrison lets go of Nerris's hands to turn to Preston, looking pensive. "I was still here, in the mess hall. I could see both of you, but I couldn't hear anything you were saying properly, and it looked like you couldn't see me  _and_ you couldn't hear me either. It's like... I was in a different plane of reality, and the only thing keeping us three apart was an invisible barrier. One that kept me from hearing and speaking to you, and one that kept you from hearing and seeing me. Like... one of those disappearing illusions, I guess." He waves his hand. "Smoke and mirrors, but on a different scale entirely."

"... Are you saying you..." Nerris murmurs. "Made yourself... disappear?"

Harrison freezes, and, despite himself, thinks about it, before horror dawns on his face.

Slowly, ever so slowly, he nods.

"Harrison..." Preston manages to say, mute shock lacing his tone.

"I made myself disappear..." Harrison whispers. It's like he doesn't believe it himself. His frame begins to shake, and, sensing it somehow, Nerris attempts to blindly grab at one of his hands. Her hand lands on his sleeve instead, so she traces it down to his hand and grips it. "I... I was thinking that- I should've disappeared- and then someone-"

"Someone...?"

"Someone slammed something on the table, and I hit my head on the table, and-" Harrison shuts his eyes, recall flooding way too fast into his mind for his liking. He remembers Preston, looking right through him. Nikki, looking right through him. Nerris, patting her leg like he's not there. "I think... that's when... I think that's when I disappeared, like... like a thunderclap, I was gone - to you guys, at least."

Silence.

"I disappeared..." Harrison repeats, the horror still wreaking havoc on his insides. "I disappeared... I made myself disappear..."

Preston's golden eyes narrow. He reaches out to place a hand on Harrison's shoulder, and the other boy looks up at him, ready to panic. "Harrison."

"Preston?" Nerris can hear the sudden seriousness in his tone.

"I think it's time we do what we woke up early to do," The thespian says slowly. Harrison's eyes flicker in recognition despite the panic and despondency threatening to take over. "I think it's time for you to actually practice your magic."


End file.
